Aircraft ground support vehicles are frequently used to perform aircraft-related ground support operations at airports around the world. For example, aircraft ground support vehicles may move the aircraft for purposes of pre-taxi and/or post-taxi movement, gate pushback, and maintenance positioning. Aircraft ground support vehicles may also be called upon to deliver a source of auxiliary power to the aircraft, which is conventionally performed by towing a separate power cart to the location of the aircraft and connecting the power cart to the aircraft.
Performing these ground support operations simultaneously in a conventional manner using a single aircraft ground support vehicle is neither safe nor practical, as this would require movement of the aircraft while also towing the power cart. As a result, a single aircraft ground support vehicle will either perform these tasks sequentially, or multiple aircraft ground support vehicles will be used to respectively perform these tasks. The first situation increases the time required to perform the ground support operations. The second situation doubles the number ground support vehicles needed to accomplish the ground support operations, which may draw resources away from other tasks. Both situations can impact aircraft schedules and maintenance activities.